"17th Century Dutch Row Buildings (15mm scale)" Topic

I have added three more structures to my series of 17th Century buildings/ houses – this time Dutch row buildings. They include from left to right: a warehouse (with guard shack), a tenement, and a shop. They are enhanced paper models, foamboard covered with printed cardstock. All are in 15mm-18mm scale.

The buildings could be used for the Dutch Republic, Spanish Netherlands, parts of France and perhaps western Germany. They could also probably be used for later 16th Century, Wars Of Religion, Eighty Years War, etc.

The warehouse has a boom at the top for the use of a block and tackle to lift loads up to the doors of each level. It also has a guard shack. The shack is there in case the owner would rent out the facilities as a munitions magazine. The shack can be removed revealing a side door in the warehouse if the place is to be used to store civilian goods. No chimney on the warehouse, no one lives there and we don't want fires!

The tenement would have space for maybe eight families. Just like now, many townfolk could not afford their own homes and had to rent from a landlord.

The shop has some features that I can't really explain. The posts that hold up the canopy above the front door are unusual to me but I simply went with what was shown in period paintings.

Cheers!

Gallo

Very nicely done!

Jim

Very nice!

Thanks Jim! Thanks Shag!

Cheers!

Gallo

Studying such buildings in Amsterdam, I discovered some interesting facts that were incorporated into their building designs. Taxes were very high for the time. It was based upon the footprint of land it took up. So, in order to avoid more taxes with a larger footprint, they built up. Each floor overlapped the one below it and expanded towards the street. Since Amsterdam was a naval port, the upper floors were used a lot as warehouse space and earn additional income. The pulley was used like an external elevator and lower floors simply hooked the ropes closer to effect easier loading/unloading from the floors. So many of the designs, when viewed from the side, look like inverted stair steps! Just thought this might be interesting for a few.

Hi Tom,

Sorry I didn't reply sooner but I was away for Thanksgiving. I believe you are referring to the medieval style of architecture where the upper floors are "jettied". Here is a link that explores several theories as to why this was so popular and iconic.

YouTube link

As you mentioned, many towns in the Netherlands were involved in the trade bonanza that made this part of the world embarrassingly wealthy. There was much need for storehouses for all the goods. I designed and built the warehouse on the small side to conserve space on the war game table.

This row of buildings are not jettied but I am in the process of making another grouping that are more medieval-looking. Two out of three are jettied and might be typical of Burgundian structures of the mid to late 1400s. Of course they could also be used for regions outside Burgundy since the styles were quite popular throughout northern Europe.

Cheers!

Gallo

Those houses look lovely indeed.

Dye4minis, I have honestly never seen houses that extend towards the streets. Could also depend on the neighbourhood I suppose and I simple have never visited those. If you got some pictures, could you share them?

Hi Berggeit,

Thank you for your encouraging comment about my Dutch house models. I've never been to Europe but I find myself fascinated with the architecture. I believe the Amsterdam houses Dye4minis was referring to are listed as "late medieval" on the internet. The internet is my primary source for architectural examples that inspire my paper models.

I recall that as I was researching, I found photos of a few late medieval houses in Amsterdam, still standing, that had the jettied features as described by Dye4minis. I am looking at such a photo now, and it appears to be a wooden house, probably 4 stories high with the third floor jettied, overhanging the street, perhaps 1-2 feet beyond the two floors below. Clearly the house has been modified as the bottom floor appears to be a modern pub with signage,"Heinekin's Bier".

I would like to wish you and all the people here at TMP a very happy holiday season.

Cheers!

Gallo

@ uno online
Wow! It looks so realistic and impressive. Thanks for sharing it

Hi Marc,

Thanks for your comment. I especially enjoy researching and designing the models. Right now I'm painting up 15mm French for the War of the Spanish Succession (WSS). All my architectural models are meant to be compatible with 15mm / 18mm scale. I'm still doing research to make a small northern European castle. Also, I recently found my old files for WWI buildings and houses for France. I plan to redesign their exterior textures to make them more realistic.

Cheers!

Gallo

Your additions sound fantastic and really capture the atmosphere of a bustling 17th-century Dutch town! The details you've added, especially to the warehouse with its boom for a block and tackle system and the removable guard shack, give it a rich narrative that adds versatility to its use. The lack of a chimney is a clever historical touch, reinforcing the building's strictly utilitarian purpose.

Hello margot19,

Thanks for being interested in my Dutch model buildings. I used the same buildings in the background for some late medieval models that I made at a later time.

TMP link

I had to put any further modeling on hold in favor of spending time on other projects. Right now I'm getting 15mm figures together for a few battalions of WSS Dutch infantry.

Cheers!

Gallo

My father, who was Dutch, said that furniture would be hauled up using the pulleys because the stairs would be too steep and narrow to allow it to be carried in that way. I guess that it would be an easier way to do it regardless of the steepness or width of the stairs.

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